Drawer-check



(No Model.)

O. T, KE'NNEY. DRAWER CHECK.

Patented Nov. 25, 1890.

/ dariwl finnq UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIGE.

CHARLES T. KENNEY, OF EAST ST. LOUIS, ILLINOIS.

DRAWER-CHECK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 441,308, dated November 25, 1890.

Application filed July 31, 1890. $erial No. 360,537. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES T. KENNEY, of East St. Louis, St. Clair county, Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Drawer-Checks, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

My invention relates to an automatic check attachment for the drawers of bureaus, desks, and other forms of furniture, the same being compactly arranged, ready to be attached to the inside surface of the drawer simply by the driving of a few small screws or tacks.

The invention consists in the peculiar construction, combination, and arrangement of parts of the check hereinafter set forth, and pointed out in the claim.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of a drawer having my improved check applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a vertical section showing the drawer during the act of being inserted in the box or case. tical section showing the automatic check applied to a modified form of box or case, the latterbeing devoid of the common upper front rail, and the drawer being shown at the limit of its outward movement. Fig. 4 is a detail view in perspective of the check frame or plate having the automatic dog removed therefrom, and Fig. 5 is a like view of the automatic dog detached from its normal location on said check-plate.

My invention, now to be described in detail, is an automatic check for drawers, constructed complete and compact in one piece of mechanism, adapted to be applied on the inside rear portion of the drawer by any unskilled person who can use a screw-driver or a hammer and be taken off by the same person for the purpose of preventing the accidental pulling out and dropping of said drawer, the same invention being particularly applicable to sewing-machines, tables, dressing-cases, wardrobes, cupboards, and the like.

1 indicates the ordinary box or case, and 2 the usual opening therein for the drawer, surmounted by the front rail 3 and top at.

My check may be said to have only three parts-via, the check-plate 5, the automatic dog 6, and a suitable projection located on the box, with which said dog comes in con Fig. 3 is a ver-' tact and prevents pulling out of the drawer beyond a certain limit fixed by the operator, the check-plate and dog being complete in one piece ready for attachment.

The check-plate 5 is preferably made of sheet metal, stamped in rectangular contour, of sufficient size to project farther than the dog will, no matter in what position said dog may be placed during operation, whereby a novice will not be led to wrongly attach the plate because of rounded or other portions projecting beyond said plate, it only being necessary for such person to place the rectangular plate in contact with the rear end of the drawer, with its upper edge in alignment with the upper edge of said drawer. On one edge (the front) of the check-plate an angular portion is removed during the stamp ng operation, leaving a recess 7anda pro ection 8, and this projection is turned outwardly at a right angle to the face'of said plate and forms a lug or shoulder for limiting the forward movement of the head of the dog 6. Of course when the device is made of cast-iron this stop 8 will be cast integral with said check-plate. This lug, which I may term 8 hereinafter, also performs another function, that of limiting the rear rotation of the dog 6 by contact therewith of the lower end of said dog. The said lug, it will be observed, is not located too high up on the check-plate, but is sufficiently low down thereon to permit the head of the dog to be drawn down and pass beneath the front rail of the box or any suitable projection in the path of said dog. (See Fig. 2.)

The dog 6 is provided with a head 9, havin g upon its front edge a straight surface and upon its rear edge aourved surface or a slanting one, whereby when said dog is pivotally secured to the check-plate, as it is by means of rivet 10, and the drawer is slidinward it may act as an ordinary pivoted dog and not catch on projections, but slide beneath them in whatever form they may be met with. This dog is provided with a lower part opposite the head portion,which is so constructed that the normal tendency is for the dog to retain an upright position, with the front edge of this lower part in contact with the lug 8, Fig. 1. This may be accomplished by weighting the said lower part and attaching one end of a spring 12 thereto, the other end of the said spring beingsecured to the lug 8.

In applying the invention to boxes which have no front rail, as in the case of most sewing-machines, I out an inclined groove 13 in the under side of the top 4, the same beginning at any-suitable point in rear of the frontsay at 1-:tand extending forward at greaterinclination and terminating in a shoulder or stop 15, with which the dog is adapted to come in contact when the outward limit of movement of drawenis reached. A metallic plate 16 may be located at the outer termination of said groove for the purpose of taking the shock off of the same, which otherwise would soon become marred by reason of op eration. In some casesI may run this groove full length of the path of the automatic dog, and the operation will be the same in most respects.

In using an inclined groove when the drawer is pushed in and it is required that it be pulled out alimited distance the dog is in the position shown in Fig. 2 but as soon as the drawer is pulled out, the dog enters the inclined groove 13 and commences to assume its normal position, and is thus enabled to come into contact with the shouldered termination 15 and prevent the complete pulling out of the drawer. In some cases, however, I may choose to dispense with this groove and locate the shock-plate 16 directly upon the under surface of the top in the path of the dog; but this will not be so desirable as to use said groove,because when the drawer is pulled out very suddenly the dog may not have time enough to assume position to come in contact with said plate 16, and the consequence may be that the drawer will fall to the floor.

Holes 17 for the screws or nails and a central aperture 18 for reception of the pivot are formed in check-plate 5.

Myinvention is to be manufactured in both right and left hand form, so that a righthand check can be used on one side of a drawer and a left-hand one on the other side, this provision being made to meet the case of sewing-machine drawers which are located on both sides of the stand, whereby the check may be located on the inner side of the drawers, which are usually coarse cheap wood.

By simply depressing the head of the dog 6 with the hand the drawer can be entirely re-' moved from the box.

No changes whatever are required in the drawer to attach the improved check, and the said dog need not be touched with the hands in pushing the drawer into the box. It is clearly an independent attachment.

I am aware that it is common to construct grooves in the sides of slides and locate a weighted dog in the groove, also that nonautomatic catches have been applied to the inside of drawers; but in all of these cases the drawer is required to be especially constructed for reception of the eatch,or else the catch is fixed on inside of drawer and has to be adjusted by hand. I provide an automatic self-complete attachment.

What I claim islhe improved automatic drawer-check attachment consisting of a plate 5, perforated for passage of attaching screws or nails and having a centrally-located pivot 10, aweighted dog mounted upon this pivot, its upper end projecting above the top of the drawer, a lug 8, for limiting the rotation of said dog, and a spring 12 to normally urge said dog against the lug, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES T. KEN NEY;

Witnesses:

O. K. J ONES, J NO. 0. HIGDON. 

